Advanced Placement American History Syllabus
Instructor: Mr. Brad Johnson (Coach J.)
Course #: 233
E-mail:
Phone: 371-3600 ext 3321
Teacher lunch/prep time: 11:00 – 1:00
Objectives: The primary objective of this class is to prepare students to be creative, responsible and conscientious citizens. An important secondary objective is to provide students with a comprehensive, college-level course on the history of the United States, providing them with information on the political, social, economic, cultural and military history and traditions of our nation, in accordance with established Illinois state social studies standards for the 11th grade. Additionally, a third goal is to best prepare all students to pass the national A. P. U. S. history test on Friday, May 05, 2017. To meet the primary objectives of this course, I have established the following supporting objectives.
- Through their words and actions, students will display the attributes of good citizens.
- In fostering a climate of total inclusion, students will show respect for all people regardless of culture, economic status, occupation, primary language, religion, orientation, or physical/mental abilities.
- Students will improve their oral and written communication skills.
- Students will display an appreciation of the subject being taught, and will achieve in accordance with established Illinois educational standards and personal abilities.
- Students will regularly display self-discipline, responsibility, unselfishness, respect for public institutions and the laws and rules of their school, city, state and nation.
- Students will display a commitment to bettering themselves, their school and their community
General Information You have chosen to take a demanding, COLLEGE LEVEL survey course in U. S. history. As such, I shall expect much more from you than I do of students in standard history classes. I expect you to read and annotate the entire textbook as well as several additional materials. I also expect you to do more than memorize names, dates and facts: It is even more imperative for you to analyze, form conclusions, and fully and firmly support those conclusions both orally and in writing. If we are successful in this academic endeavor, you will also synthesize material and challenge, then enhance or change, your previous thinking about the history of our nation.
Advanced placement courses are much more challenging than mainstream courses. Consequently, it is important that students and their parents/guardians be aware of the significant commitment required to achieve success in this course. Below, I have listed some expectations and student responsibilities for this course.
The Student’s Personal Responsibilities This is a class in which YOU, the student, must take primary responsibility for your success. One of the more important tasks for you is to READ YOUR TEXTBOOK AND ANY OTHER ASSIGNED MATERIAL. Between August 2016 and May 2017, you must read all chapters from the textbook, in addition to other supporting materials. Additionally, you will usually write one essay or thesis a week and take tests that include multiple choice and essay questions. Some of the essays that you will write will be Document Based Questions (DBQ), in which you will have to analyze a series of documents regarding a particular period and then respond to a prompt about them. In your response you will have to both address the documents and weave in supporting historical facts.
Course Content AP US history surveys the period beginning with pre-Columbian Native American societies and ending with international affairs and domestic changes up to about 2004. The course will mostly follow a chronological path; however, some topics or issues, (such as the status and rights of women, Native Americans, Hispanics and African Americans; U. S. foreign policy; and developments in art and music) will bridge and overlap chronological time periods.
An important part of the class will include development of key skills. Consequently we shall work to improve your skills in how to successfully address multiple-choice questions of the type found on the AP exam. As such, we shall work to help you understand the breadth of material, often from several different sources, not simply recall facts. We shall also work extensively to improve your skills as a history writer. We shall therefore write many essays, which I shall thoroughly and critically grade. I encourage students to review, consider, and apply any corrections or suggestions I include in my evaluation of your essays. I also strongly encourage students to develop as strong a vocabulary as they can during the course of this school year.
The AP Exam in U. S. History One of the goals I stated on page 1 was to prepare each of you to take, and pass, the national Advanced Placement Examination, scheduled for the morning of Friday, May 05, 2017. Taking the AP exam is an option, not a requirement for this course. Whether or not you take the national exam will have an effect on your grade point average, as only those that take the test get the fully weighted grade point. I strongly recommend that you do take it, however, because colleges and universities are now more interested in seeing that you completed the whole AP course by taking the exam. Students who successfully complete this exam may receive advanced placement and/or course credit at many colleges/universities (some of our students have received as many as 6 units of U. S. history course credit for passing the test); however the individual colleges and universities, and often departments within those institutions, not the College Board, determine what constitutes a “passing” score and whether or not to assign academic credit.
Homework and Class work This course will be very demanding on students’ time, requiring considerable homework. To be successful, you will probably have to do at least 6-10 hours of reading/homework a week. In-class work will be devoted to ensuring your understanding of what you have read in the textbook and other materials, as well as developing the requisite skills you will need to excel on all aspects of the test. In-class assignments will include, but not be limited to, supplementary readings, geography exercises, time period evaluations, power point and oral presentations, group discussions, quizzes, and objective and essay tests. I shall try to give you at least one week’s notice before major tests. Additionally, most quizzes will be announced ahead of time, but some may be unannounced. The bottom line is simply: to get the most out of the classroom instruction, you need to keep up with the reading. Additionally a “hyperpoint” outside preparation notebook will be required at the end of each quarter.
Participation It is very important that you participate in all activities in a positive, constructive manner. Much of our class work will involve the Socratic teaching style—where I ask questions regarding your reading assignments. Generally, to better prepare you for the Socratic sessions, you MUST be prepared by reading the assigned material. You will receive participation points for the quality as well as quantity of your participation during these sessions. The best way to earn maximum participation points is to come prepared with your material, and work to the best of your ability, each day.
After reading the information provided in this document, a parent or guardian should sign, along with the student, in the spaces indicated at the bottom of each page. Students should bring the signed documents to class and submit them as homework assignments not later than Friday, August 26, 2016.
I have read and understand the information in this document, have no immediate concerns, and agree to abide by all of the rules indicated.
I have read the information on this sheet and have the concerns listed below or on the back of this page.
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Student’s signature Parent/Guardian’s signature
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Parent e-mail (Optional)
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Date signed Date signed
Questions, concerns or anything instructor should be aware of: